Ann Tsubota

Department Chair, Ceramics

Artist statement

Working with clay offers me the opportunity to explore issues of form and surface with a material whose various stages of metamorphosis engages my imagination. Whether the pieces are functional or sculptural, my work with clay usually involves highly manipulated surfaces, either with glaze effects or impressed designs.

My current work in Raku ceramics involves using various masking techniques such as ceramic slip resist, tape, stickers, stencils, glue and racing stripes to creates a collage effect with the glazes and slips. The strips of bare clay create a continuity around the vessel. I want the viewer to enjoy viewing the round surface as a continuous visual non-linear narrative. The black and white vessels are meant to be seen in a similar way. With only black and white patterns, the pathways may seem to be less complex.

Artist biography

Ann Tsubota is a ceramic artist whose work includes limited edition functional work and sculptural ceramics. She has exhibited in New York, California, Hawaii, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and throughout New Jersey.

In 1984 she was a recipient of an Artist Fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. She had a one-person exhibition in the New Jersey Artists Series at the State Museum in Trenton, New Jersey and has also exhibited at the Noyes Museum of Art, the Morris Museum and the Montclair Art Museum.

From 1981-2002 she was represented by Azuma Gallery in New York City. Currently she is represented by several galleries including Sara Gallery in New York City, The Coryell Gallery in Lambertville, N.J., and Rabbet Gallery in New Brunswick, N.J.

Ann has her work in the Sidney Swidler Collection at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California.

Ann graduated with a B.A. from Douglass College and a Masters in Fine Arts from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. She is a Full Professor of Art at Raritan Valley Community College where she is currently chairperson of the Visual and Performing Arts Department. She also teaches Raku workshops at Peters Valley Craft Center in Layton, New Jersey.